I visited my parents this week and had a blast. We hung out, hiked, swam, the kids ran around with Nerf swords well after dark...what more could you ask for? My brother's kids came over on the weekend and my mom had a great idea of having the kids make crushed ice candles. This is...

Tis the season...to make funny pumpkin faces and roast the seeds! My brother brought over pumpkins for the kids to carve, and after gutting out each one, there was just no way I could throw away all those wonderful pumpkin seeds. Pumpkin seeds are full of goodness for you. They are high in antioxidants, zinc,...

Basic soap recipe sounds so boring, but this is my "go to" recipe. I really like this recipe because it is simple, and it has always worked out great. It makes a wonderfully hard bar that lasts a very long time, and I can add whatever kinds of lovely extras to it like essential oils,...

Talk about amazing! This recipe is adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie. I was looking for another way to make homemade chocolate chips. I'm not satisfied with my current recipe, because the butter or coconut oil separates from the chips too much for my liking. This recipe, though, is so yummy that it will never last...

4 great window washing recipes! Yea, don't we love window washing???!!! Actually, I don't really mind it. I just hate when I think I've done a marvelous job and then when the sun shines on them it looks like my kids were licking them or something. Part of this has to do with what liquid...

This Castile soap recipe was the first kind of soap that I made. The reason being that it is mostly made of olive oil. I did not have any lard or tallow at the time and did not know where I could find some. I could have gotten some lard from the store, but I...

Yes, Peppermint Patty SOAP, not the yummy goodies you can eat. But these smell just like them. When I got done, my son came in and said, "Yea!" I told him it was soap and he looked so disappointed, ha ha. I guess I'll have to make him some peppermint patties. I have a great...

These cookies really are the best ever oatmeal chocolate chip cookies! The recipe has been asked for over and over again. It's an amazing recipe that is always a hit. I make other types of cookies and my family says they are good, but asks why I didn't make oatmeal chocolate chip. They are that...

Homemade Pancake Syrup is very frugal and tastes great. Not all of us have the resources or are able to afford real maple syrup. If I had maple trees, I would have tapped them before I unpacked my luggage, but alas, that is not the case. So, since I do not want to give my...

As my children get older, I have them choose a meal that they learn to make all by themselves. My daughter was very quick to choose Fettuccine Alfredo, or as it's more commonly made in our house: Spaghetti Alfredo. I got this recipe from an Italian lady when I first got married. It's been a...

This is something my family must always have in the house. My kids use tortillas to make cheese quesadillas for lunch (with pepper jack cheese, super yummy), bean burritos, chicken tacos, etc. Store-bought tortillas are loaded with extra ingredients and preservatives. We have a soy allergy and so we have to make our own anyway (Soy is in...

I wish I had a nice food strainer/sauce maker. I've used one once and they are great! Alas, I do not, so this is what I do to make a tomato sauce or marinara sauce that is the easiest and the least time and energy consuming when I have a huge crop of tomatoes that...

There are lots of great reasons why I like the idea of making my own homemade deodorant. It's easy, frugal, and (a big reason) I can smell however I like!! Be careful though, it doesn't really matter how much you love the smell of your deodorant, people just don't respond well when you run around the house asking...

A lot of people around where I live eat stuffed peppers. I did not grow up eating them this way, but my husband did so I've used this recipe a number of times for him. I already pickled a ton of banana peppers from last year, so I didn't grow any this year. My garden...

I love granola, but it's so expensive. Recently, I've been playing around with different ways of making Homemade Granola. I've finally found proportions that I love. I can't get enough of it (especially with milk kefir). I even calculated how much I pay in ingredients per oz so I could compare the price to store-bought...